CORPORATION  COMMISSION  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA! 

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ABERDEEN  AND  ROCKFISH  RAILROAD 


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No. 


BEFORE  THE 

INTERSTATE  COMMERCE  COMMISSION 


Corporation  Commission  of  North  Carolina 

VS. 

Aberdeen  and  Rockfish  Railroad  et  al. 


COMPLAINT 


CORPORATION  COMMISSION  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA 

By  W.  T.  LEE,  Chairman 
GEORGE  P.  PELL  and 
A.  J.  MAXWELL, 

Commissioners. 


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BEFORE  THE 

INTERSTATE  COMMERCE  COMMISSION 


Corporation  Commission  of  North  Carolina 

VS. 

Aberdeen  and  Rockfish  Railroad  et  al. 


COMPLAINT 


To  the  Interstate  Commerce  Commission: 

The  Corporation  Commission  of  the  State  of  North  Caro¬ 
lina,  hereinafter  referred  to  as  the  complainant,  being  legally 
authorized  so  to  do,  files  this  its  complaint  on  behalf  of  said 
State,  localities  therein,  and  the  citizens  thereof,  and  respect¬ 
fully  shows: 

1 

The  transportation  companies  named  in  Exhibit  A,  herein¬ 
after  referred  to  as  defendants,  are  common  carriers  en¬ 
gaged  in  the  transportation  of  freight  only  by  railroad  in 
some  cases,  and  partly  by  railroad  and  partly  by  water  in 
other  cases,  between  points  in  one  state  or  territory  and 
points  in  another  state  or  territory,  transporting  commodi¬ 
ties  shipped  in  interstate  commerce,  and  as  such  carriers 
are  subject  to  the  provisions  of  the  Act  to  Regulate  Com¬ 
merce,  approved  February  4,  1887,  and  Acts  amendatory 
thereof  or  supplementary  thereto. 

2 

Defendants  (except  the  Clyde  Steamship  Company)  have 
published  a  complete  line  of  class  and  commodity  rates  be¬ 
tween  New  York  and  interior  Eastern  points  adjacent 


2 


thereto  and  points  in  North  Carolina  via  water  and  rail  and 
via  rail,  water  and  rail,  through  Norfolk,  Va.,  as  shown  in 
Agent  Cottrell’s  I.  C.  C.  Nos.  375,  324,  401,  402,  and  444. 

3 

The  Clyde  Steamship  Company  operates  a  regular  sched¬ 
ule  of  freight  steamers  between  New  York  and  Wilmington, 
N.  C.,  and  has  published  through  rates  between  interior 
Eastern  points  in  New  York,  Pennsylvania,  etc.,  and  Wil¬ 
mington,  N.  C.,  as  shown  in  Clyde  Steamship  Company’s 
I.  C.  C.  No.  501 ;  also,  proportional  rates  between  New  York 
City  and  Wilmington,  N.  C.,  as  shown  in  Clyde  Steamship 
Company’s  I.  C.  C.  No.  497. 


4 

The  Clyde  Steamship  Company  also  has  published  through 
rates  from  Eastern  and  interior  Eastern  points  via  water 
and  rail  to  points  in  the  South,  through  South  Atlantic  ports 
to  which  it  operates  steamer  lines,  except  to  points  in  North 
Carolina,  through  the  port  of  Wilmington,  as  shown  in  Clyde 
Steamship  Company’s  I.  C.  C.  Nos.  456  and  460. 

5 

Complaint  is  hereby  made  of  the  failure  of  the  Clyde 
Steamship  Company  and  the  defendants  named  in  Exhibit  A 
to  publish  through  rates  between  New  York  City  and  inte¬ 
rior  points  in  North  Carolina  through  the  port  of  Wilming¬ 
ton,  and  that  the  failure  of  the  defendant  companies  to 
publish  through  rates  between  New  York  and  interior  points 
in  the  State  of  North  Carolina  constitutes  a  discrimination 
against  the  localities  and  shippers  in  the  State  of  North 
Carolina,  and  subjects  the  said  localities  and  shippers  to 
undue  and  unreasonable  prejudice  and  disadvantage,  in  that 
it  denies  to  the  said  shippers  and  localities  the  benefit  of 
\he  use  of  the  route  through  their  nearest  port,  and  the 
benefit  and  advantage  of  rates  reflecting  the  shorter  rail 


3 


haul  to  and  from  the  port  of  Wilmington,  in  violation  of 
Section  3  of  the  Act  to  Regulate  Commerce. 

6 

Complainant  is  informed  and  believes  that  the  reason  for 
the  failure  of  the  Clyde  Steamship  Company  and  other  de¬ 
fendants  named  in  Exhibit  A  to  publish  through  rates  be¬ 
tween  New  York  City  and  North  Carolina  points,  as  com¬ 
plained  of  above,  is  due  to  a  disagreement  among  themselves 
as  to  what  the  total  rates  should  be  or  how  such  rates  should 
divide,  and  to  the  desire  of  such  of  the  defendant  railroad 
companies  as  operate  to  and  from  the  port  of  Norfolk  to  get 
the  benefit  of  the  longer  rail  haul  to  and  from  that  port. 

7 

In  the  absence  of  through  reasonable  rates  between  New 
York  and  North  Carolina  points  via  Clyde  Steamship  Com¬ 
pany  through  Wilmington,  the  State  of  North  Carolina  and 
its  citizens  are  deprived  of  a  route  for  traffic  to  which  they 
are  justly  entitled,  and  at  rates  lower  than  rates  in  effect  via 
other  routes  by  reason  of  the  fact  that  the  water  haul  to 
and  from  the  port  of  Wilmington  would  place  traffic  within 
the  borders  of  the  State  and  to  a  large  part  of  the  State  of 
North  Carolina  would  require  the  shorter  rail  haul  to  the 
interior  than  the  routes  now  being  used  through  Norfolk, 
Virginia. 

8 

It  is  the  contention  of  the  complainant  that  inasmuch  as 
the  Clyde  Steamship  Company  has  published  through  rates 
in  their  I.  C.  C.  No.  501,  between  interior  points  in  Pennsyl¬ 
vania,  New  Jersey,  New  York,  etc.,  and  Wilmington,  N.  C., 
out  of  which  through  rates  they  receive  certain  proportions 
from  New  York  to  Wilmington,  it  is  logical  to  presume  that 
they  could  afford,  and  therefore  should  be  required,  to  pub¬ 
lish  through  rates  between  New  York  and  interior  North 


4 


Carolina  destinations  through  the  port  of  Wilmington,  in 
connection  with  other  defendant  carriers  named  in  Exhibit 
A,  based  upon  factors  approximating  the  proportions  they 
now  receive  on  through  traffic  from  interior  Eastern  points 
through  the  port  of  New  York  to  Wilmington,  N.  C.,  plus 
reasonable  proportional  rates  of  rail  carriers  between  Wil¬ 
mington  and  interior  points  in  North  Carolina,  plus  reason¬ 
able  charges  for  wharfage  and  handling  at  Wilmington. 

9 

The  through  water  and  rail  rates  on  classes  and  commodi¬ 
ties  between  New  York  and  points  in  North  Carolina  through 
the  port  of  Norfolk,  Va.,  are  and  have  always  been  made 
certain  differentials  over  the  rail  rates  from  and  to  Norfolk 
and  in  the  division  of  said  rates  as  between  water  and  rail 
carriers  the  latter  receive  less  than  their  local  rates  from 
and  to  Norfolk. 

10 

The  complainant  contends  that  under  the  principles  now 
employed  by  the  carriers  in  making  and  dividing  rates 
through  the  port  of  Norfolk,  Va.,  reasonable  rates  and  divi¬ 
sions  should  be  established  through  the  port  of  Wilmington, 
and  which  should  reasonably  be  less  than  rates  now  in  effect 
through  the  port  of  Norfolk. 

11 

The  Clyde  Steamship  Company  at  one  time  published 
through  rates  between  New  York  and  points  in  North  Caro¬ 
lina  through  the  port  of  Wilmington  (see  Clyde  Steamship 
Company’s  I.  C.  C.  No.  69) ,  which  rates  were  withdrawn  over 
protest  of  the  North  Carolina  Corporation  Commission. 
However,  while  these  rates  remained  in  force  from  1909  to 
1916,  no  considerable  volume  of  business  developed,  owing 
to  the  fact  the  rates  were  identically  the  same  as  in  effect 
through  the  port  of  Norfolk,  and  the  service  through  the 
latter  route  was  superior. 


5 


Wherefore,  complainant  prays  that  defendants  may  be 
severally  required  to  answer  the  charges  herein ;  that  after 
due  hearing  an  order  be  made  commanding  said  defendants 
and  each  of  them  to  establish  and  put  in  force  and  apply 
just,  reasonable  and  non-discriminatory  rates,  rules,  regu¬ 
lations,  practices  for  the  transportation  of  classified  freight 
and  all  other  commodities  between  New  York  and  points  in 
North  Carolina  through  the  port  of  Wilmington.  And  that 
such  other  and  further  order  or  orders  be  made  as  the  Com¬ 
mission  may  consider  proper  in  the  premises  and  complain¬ 
ant’s  cause  may  appear  to  require. 

Dated  at  Raleigh,  N.  C.,  October  5,  1923. 

Corporation  Commission  of  North  Carolina 

By  W.  T.  LEE,  Chairman 
GEORGE  P.  PELL  and 
A.  J.  MAXWELL, 

Commissioners. 


EXHIBIT  “A” 


Aberdeen  &  Rockfish  Railroad 

Appalachian  Railway 

Asheville  &  Craggy  Mountain  Railroad 

Asheville  Southern  Railway 

Atlantic  &  Carolina  Railroad 

Atlantic  Coast  Line  Railroad  Company 

Atlantic  &  Western  Railroad 

Atlantic  &  Yadkin  Railway 

Black  Mountain  Railway 

Bonlee  &  Western  Railroad 

Carolina  Railroad 

Carolina,  Clinchfield  &  Ohio  Railway 

Carolina  &  Northeastern  Railroad 

Carolina  &  Northwestern  Railway 

Carolina  &  Tennessee  Southern  Railway 

Cliffside  Railroad 

Clyde  Steamship  Company 

Danville  &  Western  Railway 

Dover  &  Southbound  Railroad 

Durham  &  Southern  Railway 

East  Carolina  Railway 

Elkin  &  Alleghany  Railroad 

East  Tennessee  &  Western  North  Carolina  Railroad 

High  Point,  Randleman,  Asheboro  &  Southern  Railroad 

High  Point,  Thomasville  &  Denton  Railroad 

Kinston  Carolina  Railroad 

Laurinburg  &  Southern  Railroad 

Lawndale  Railway  &  Industrial  Company 

Linville  River  Railway 

Louisville  &  Nashville  Railroad 

Maxton,  Alma  &  Southbound  Railroad 

New  Holland,  Higginsport  &  Mount  Vernon  Railroad 

Norfolk  Southern  Railroad  Company 

Norfolk  &  Western  Railway 

Ocona  Lufty  Railroad 

Piedmont  &  Northern  Railway 

Raleigh  &  Charleston  Railroad 

Randolph  &  Cumberland  Railway  (J.  S.  Crews,  Receiver) 
Roanoke  Railway 
Rockingham  Railroad 


7 


Seaboard  Air  Line  Railway 
Smoky  Mountain  Railway 
Southern  Railway 

Tallulah  Palls  Railway  Company  (J.  P.  Gray,  Receiver) 

Tennessee  &  North  Carolina  Railway 

Townsville  Railroad 

Virginia  &  Carolina  Southern  Railroad 

Warrenton  Railroad 

Washington  &  Vandemere  Railroad 

Wellington  &  Powellsville  Railroad 

Wilmington,  Brunswick  &  Southern  Railroad 

Winston-Salem  Southbound  Railway 

Yadkin  Railroad 


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; 


FOR  USE  ONLY  IN 


THE  NORTH  CAROLINA  COLLECTION 


